bipedalism

American  

[bahy-ped-l-iz-uhm] / baɪˈpɛd lˌɪz əm /

Also bipedality

noun

1. the condition of being two-footed or of using two feet for standing and walking.

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Etymology

Origin of bipedalism

First recorded in 1905–10; bipedal + -ism

Example Sentences

Prior to that, she was a paleoanthropology researcher and received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in 2016 for work focused on hominin bipedalism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

He posited that humans evolved through natural selection, and that the first thing to develop was bipedalism; in other words, standing upright preceded brain development.

From New York Times • Apr. 26, 2024

"The dramatic increase in the average evolution rate of semicircular canals" within these apes may illuminate that "the rapid evolution of bipedalism in the human lineage in response to gradual global cooling."

From Salon • Feb. 16, 2024

"Our study points to a three-step evolution of human bipedalism," adds Terry Harrison, a New York University anthropologist and one of the paper's co-authors.

From Science Daily • Jan. 29, 2024

The human lineage, through a succession of species, subsequently acquired key characteristics such as bipedalism, longer limbs and a larger brain.

From Reuters • Jun. 1, 2023